Until the 15th of March 2020, in Angers, at the Domaine national du Château d’Angers, France, “Treasure of tapestries” is the meeting place to discover or rediscover the richness of the collection of tapestries from the treasure of the Cathedral of Angers, one of the most important in Europe.  This second edition of the exhibition “Treasure of Tapestries” introduces plants into the Royal Residence of the Château d’Angers, whose walls are adorned with millefleurs and verdures and Child Gardeners tapestries. Since ancient times, the wealthy have liked to surround themselves in their interiors with the beauties of nature and gardens.

Thus, tapestries, huge and movable, decorated many aristocratic residences, where trees, flowers, and fruits were represented for themselves or provided a setting for various religious or secular scenes in the medieval millefleurs and the verdures of the 17th and 18th centuries. Having gone out of fashion in the 19th century, the 20th century saw a revival of this textile art in which nature had an important place, a revival that continues today. As well as the famous tapestry of The Apocalypse, the treasure of Angers Cathedral includes around one hundred medieval and modern pieces, presenting a rich panorama of representations of nature. It is completed here by pieces from the Musée Jean-Lurçat et de la Tapisserie Contemporaine of Angers and by objects from public and private collections in Anjou. The exhibition is organized in partnership between the Centre des monuments nationaux – Domaine national du Château d’Angers, the DRAC des Pays de la Loire [Regional Cultural Affairs Directorate] and the Département de Maine-et-Loire. An exhibition catalog is available, the second issue of the collection devoted to the wealth of tapestry treasure of Angers Cathedral.

http://www.chateau-angers.fr/Actualites/Exposition-Tresor-de-tapisseries